Commemorating 74 years since the closing of the Detention Camps in Cyprus

​𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 74𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗝𝗲𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗴𝗲𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝘆𝗽𝗿𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗪𝗜𝗜.

The event took place on February 16, 2023, at the military camp "Lieutenant General Vasiliou Kapota" (former BMH), and was organised by the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Cyprus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus, and the Embassy of Israel.

The moving ceremony at BMH took place in the presence of Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides, Defense Minister Charalambos Petrides, the Chief of the National Guard Lt. Gen Zervakis, Bishop of Mesaoria Grigorios, ambassadors and diplomats.

Ambassador Anolik stressed that "We wholeheartedly thank all the brave Cypriots who helped the Jewish detainees. We thank their descendants for keeping alive the legacy of the past. Later, we would like to award them with certificates of acknowledgement."
 

Read the full speech of Ambassador Anolik:

Your Excellency, Minister of Defense, Charalambos Petrides

Your Excellency, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ioannis Kasoulides

Dear friends, Distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen

Esther Shlapin was 12 years old when the Nazis invaded Poland. She was deported with her parents to the Vilna Ghetto. Her parents perished, but Esther survived. She survived the ghetto; she survived the slave labor; she survived the deportations; she survived the horrible living conditions; she even survived the death march.

On October 19th, 1946, she managed to get aboard the ship “Latrun” at the port of Marseilles along with 1,200 other Holocaust survivors. Their hope was to sail to their homeland in pursuit of a brighter future, but the journey was not an easy one.

“Latrun” was one of the 39 ships that were captured by the British en route to the Land of Israel between 1946 and 1948. The passengers aboard were taken to Cyprus. The 18-year old Esther Shlapin was one of the thousands youngsters who were detained in the youth village or camp 65 in Xylotymbou.

And so, after overcoming the atrocities of the Holocaust, Esther and other Jewish survivors found themselves once again behind barbed wires.

The Jewish detainees in Cyprus were under a strict surveillance of the British army. They lacked a right of freedom of movement and were kept behind bars without knowing what the future entails for them.

Nevertheless, the camps were filled with life and served as places of enhancement of national identity. Children and adults were taught Hebrew, art and music. The detainees organized sports events and theatrical plays. Love affairs blossomed, new families were created and babies were born. Hope, motivation and creativity were kept alive.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We are standing here today in the place in which more than 2,000 Jewish babies were born to remember and honor the 52,000 Jews that were interned in the camps. We are also gathered here to honor the Cypriot people who stood by them in solidarity and support.

The legendary Prodromos Papavassileiou was the person that organized and coordinated groups of people in Famagusta and Larnaka providing various forms of assistance to the detainees.

He was the liaison between the Jewish leadership in the camps and the local society. He was also the coordinator of dangerous missions to help Jewish detainees escape the camps. His heroic efforts in assisting the Jewish people and the State of Israel will always be cherished and never be forgotten.

I feel honored that his children Mrs. Lina Papavasileiou-Varnava and Mr Christakis Papavasileiou, whom I am proud to call my friends, are here with us today. I would like to ask them to join me here and accept a certificate of appreciation honoring their father. Prodromos Papavasileiou’s legacy will always be a towering landmark in the relations between our two peoples.

* * *

Recently, I visited Deryneia in Famagusta district. I met and talked with descendants of members of the local community who participated in the efforts to help the detainees.

We are honored to have with us today family members of 15 of these courageous individuals from Deryneia: 13 men and 2 women. Under Prodromos Papavasileiou’s leadership, the men undertook the clandestine transfers of Jewish escapees to the shores of Famagusta to flee to pre-state Israel. The women used to provide them with food and clothing. These missions were run under highest secrecy as these activities posed a high risk to the lives of those who carried them out.

We wholeheartedly thank all the brave Cypriots who helped the Jewish detainees. We thank their descendants for keeping alive the legacy of the past. Later, we would like to award them with certificates of acknowledgement.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today we mark 74 years to the closing of the detention camps. Let us not forget that the story of the camps lays the foundation of the historical ties between our peoples. Ever since, the relations between the two countries have flourished and developed.

Minister Petrides,

Allow me take this opportunity to wholeheartedly thank you for your initiative to hold this ceremony and to turn it into an annual event. This is also an opportunity to recognize and praise your leadership in promoting close and strategic relations between the security systems of Israel and Cyprus during your tenure as the Minister of Defense. I salute you for cherishing our common past and solidifying our joint future.

Minister Kasoulides,

I would like to extend you my deepest appreciation for our excellent collaboration during your term as Minister of Foreign Affairs. I am taking the opportunity of your presence here today to thank you for being a staunch supporter of the bilateral cooperation between the State of Israel and the Republic of Cyprus and to express genuine appreciation to your vision regarding regional cooperation and your hard work to implement it.

Dear friends,

I thank you all for joining us here today.

16𝘵𝘩 𝘍𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘺 2023, 𝘢𝘵 "𝘓𝘪𝘦𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘎𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘝𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘰𝘶 𝘒𝘢𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘢" 𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱, (𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘉𝘔𝘏), 𝘕𝘪𝘤𝘰𝘴𝘪a